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Frequently Asked Questions Assessment Policy

Occupational Questionnaires

To develop customized ratings scales, you will need to determine how many proficiency levels you want for each item, create response alternatives for each grade level, and determine how each item will be scored. Developing customized rating scales will require extensive subject matter expert involvement.

Yes, you may apply different weights to the competencies (content areas). However, it is recommended you assign equal weights to each competency (content area). Using equal weights is generally the most effective and defensible course of action in the absence of a clear and documented rationale for doing otherwise.

If you do give different weights to competencies (content areas), be sure to document the justification (e.g., job analysis information, subject matter expert input) for doing so.

Check with your human resources office for which policies and procedures your agency follows. For example, some policies require that the staffing specialist change the applicant's self-report score to better reflect the applicant's true level of experience.

There are many benefits to using occupational questionnaires. They are easy to automate, they allow for positions to be filled quickly, they are relatively inexpensive compared to other assessment methods, and they are efficient. Occupational questionnaires are not burdensome and appear fair to applicants. They can also be used to assess a wide variety of competencies while posing no problems with test security. For all these reasons, most agencies are using occupational questionnaires.

Please check with your human resources office concerning agency-specific guidelines for assessment documentation, such as what information should be recorded, how long it should be stored, who should hold the information, etc. Be sure to store all documentation in a safe, secure area.
In addition, please refer to the Delegated Examining Operations Handbook, Appendix C - Records Retention and Disposition Schedule, regarding the length of time records are to be retained: http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/hiring-authorities/competitive-hiring/deo_handbook.pdf
Also, the Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures (http://www.uniformguidelines.com/uniformguidelines.html) has a section dedicated to documentation, with Section 15, subpart C(4) specifically addressing documenting selection procedures and related content.

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